President Donald Trump has issued and is expected to continue to issue executive orders relating to immigration, including visa issuance, screening procedures, E-Verify, higher H-1B wages and refugees.
The intent of these orders is to protect our nation, but they also are creating confusion, anxiety and delays for foreign nationals and their employers.
On Jan. 27, Trump signed an order titled “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States” that stops refugee admissions for at least four months and temporarily suspends the entry of immigrants and nonimmigrants from primarily Muslim countries.
The order was suspended after a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order that prohibits enforcement. An appellate court upheld the suspension.
However, the Department of Justice has announced it intends to file an emergency stay of this order and defend the president’s directive.
Additional executive orders in process include:
• Expansion of use of E-Verify
• Review and termination of parole programs
• Consideration of the allocation of H-1B visas
• Expansion of the employer site visits program
• Suspension of the visa interview waiver program
• Increased scrutiny on all filings for immigration benefits
Our advice to clients: Remain calm and informed and plan accordingly.
As these orders are implemented and/or reviewed, foreign nationals and employers should plan for delays on visa issuances for people coming to the U.S.
One should also expect delays in processing, crowding of secondary inspection sites at ports of entry and increased documentary requirements.
If you are not a U.S. citizen and intend to travel to the United States, bring all evidence of your legal status in the country, such as your passport, visa, receipt notices for pending petitions and any other evidence of your legal status and ties to the U.S.
Some of the proposed orders will curtail employment-based legal immigration, but that goes against the required workforce strategy to allow the U.S. to compete in a global economy.
As I help clients hire and retain foreign workers, I hear them say “I can’t find enough of the right talent.”
They spend much of their time recruiting employees they need today –– and almost no time recruiting for the future.
With unemployment less than 5 percent, more than 5.6 million job openings in the U.S. and an aging workforce that is not being replaced by U.S.-born talent, there are not enough skilled workers to grow our economy.
Business growth plans must have a global strategy that includes employment-based legal immigration.
That takes planning, supportive laws and executive orders and counsel from immigration attorneys who can help employers navigate processes that nurture global talent.
Carson is a past president of The Jacksonville Bar Association.